I have an application for a private day school due tonight and I have everything done except this. Probably should have done something about it sooner…
But anyway I have to submit a graded writing sample for this school. I feel like I can’t find any good writing. I’ve written some essays this year, but the English program at my school is hard and I’m in AP Lang, so I got 87s on both. They’re not interesting or good anyway.
However I did write something that I got a 94 on…a great grade for this English and the teacher. But it wasn’t your standard essay, it was a very political, heavily opinionated/critical, and informal piece of writing. It is probably the best thing I’ve written but it’s just so political and critical (that was the assignment) and not really an essay- it’s more of a column. It feels inappropriate to submit???
So I have nothing good from this year. And my past essays don’t have teacher comments on them/aren’t interesting/great. I do have an AP Bio lab report with some comments on it that I got a 100 on. Would that be appropriate???
I think if you set up what the assignment was, a political piece is fine unless it would give someone pause to have you in their student body. All schools and teachers grade differently. The graded written piece is for schools to assess your writing in the context of your schools grading and feedback. I think it would need to be an English or a social studies piece of writing. Science labs are very specific and do not really show writing capability (but that is just my opinion based on conversations with schools). I would send the piece that best showcases your writing this year. Schools are not looking for perfection but how your writing fits in with the level of their students.
Great feedback from @sroo. The AO wants this to 1. See what kind of work you submit at school.2. See how it is assessed, both in terms of grad and feedback.
They are not looking for your best grade. In some ways, a good piece of writing with an 88 will serve you well as it shows that grading is rigorous. A 98 on a shoddy piece of work raises questions about grade inflation.
If you are concerned about context, attach it with the assignment so it’s clear you were responding to that.
I sent a piece of writing I made for my English class that I got 100%. I was very good but not a 100% in an English teached school. However, since it is English Second Language thatcould explain it, right?
We were also told by the AO that they simply use the graded assignment as the baseline, to compare it to your essays, and writing part (in SSAT), to see if it’s consistent with everything, i.e, recommendation from your English teachers or feedback from your humanities subject teacher, so the AO assured us that just submit whatever we have.
The one that my son submitted was an interesting piece but not great but we submitted that one anyway. He is in general a very good writer. He is in the aspiring author club, newspaper club and got Gold from World Scholar’s Cup in writing and debate.
In your case 87 is fine, please do not be overly concerned. My son’s graded writing assignment got 12/20.
